How to Choose the Best Web Designer for Your Small Business
Sometimes it's not so easy to figure out who the best designer is for your small business website could be. How do I choose the person I want to hire from the mass of fabulous talent and website designers?
This list of things will help you strategically choose the right person, studio or agency:
The right website designer is ideally all of these things:
#1 The web designer can do the things you want
If you want certain features on your website, ask them in your meet-up if they're capable of doing that. Most features can be easily built into websites. For example, booking software like Open Table for cafes and restaurants, contact forms, payment receipts or appointment scheduling for service providers like therapists, counselors or naturopaths can be easily implemented via tools like Calendly.
The same goes for certain designs. Split sections and advanced animations on websites are usually not built into website builders and require custom CSS or additional plug-ins.
Check with your web designer to see if they're capable of implementing all the things you want on your site before you hire them. Professional website designers will also show you specific features that they've agreed to in their contract with you, to make sure that you both have written down and agreed upon the deliverables.
#2 - The web designer "clicks" with you
Most web designers offer free informational consultations to get to know the potential client, to see if there's chemistry, to answer any questions you may have, and to explain the design process to the potential client.
Not everyone gets along well with everyone. There are just some people we feel more comfortable with than others, and that's perfectly fine. So make sure you feel comfortable with your web designer and lay a healthy foundation for a successful working relationship. Ultimately, creating a website is a process that can take a few weeks and require some revisions. Therefore, you should make sure that you and your web designer are on the same page so that the process is fun and enjoyable for both of you.
#3 - The web designer has great client testimonials
Check your potential web designer's website for testimonials from past clients.
What do they say about the designer?
What do the results look like?
Is there a name and company behind these testimonials?
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#4 - You like the web designer’s portfolio
Usually, every web designer shows a small glimpse of his work on his website in his portfolio. So take a look at the portfolio of the web designer. Do you like what you see, and have they done projects that suit your taste and that you imagine for your website?
However, …
Before you completely write them off, remember that a good web designer meets the sweet spot on what their client wants and what attracts their clients' customers. This means that a portfolio only shows previous work and doesn't automatically mean that this person cannot do something completely different.
In most cases though, you can tell a designer's style by their portfolio and the clients they usually work with.
😏 psst… like to check out our Portfolio? 👉 This way!
#5 - The web designer is organized
Professional web designers use collaboration tools like Notion, Asana, or Clickup that allow them to keep track of the project and easily communicate and collaborate with you without you having to keep track of each other or schedule calls with each other every week. Let's face it - calls are time consuming and if there are more effective ways to communicate, it's worth it to use them.
If you put all instructions, feedback, and revisions in writing, you and your web designer can refer back to it to clarify things when needed.
A professional web designer will tell you about their collaboration tool in your phone call and help you use it once you start your project.
I personally use Notion as a collaboration tool and my clients love it. All files, communication, project tasks and website content are in one place. It makes it easy for my clients and me to keep track of everything and keep up with the project. At the beginning of our website project, I introduce my clients to Notion and show them how to navigate the tool in a personal video. At our kick-off meeting and website strategy meeting, I also have them ask questions about Notion to make sure they're absolutely comfortable with the tool.
A screenshot from a portion of my client dashboard for branding and website design projects
#6 - The web designer has SEO knowledge
Good website designers should have at least a basic understanding of SEO. After all, you want your website to be found through Google and load quickly so people will stay on your site long enough to buy your services. For example, if your images aren't optimized, they may take a few seconds too long to load, and your potential customer is off to the fairies.
The images on your site need to be optimized in size and contain the keywords you want to rank for, but in a way that Google doesn't penalize you for spamming. Also, your web designer will organize your text so that your keywords are in headings 1 and 2 so that you're found for the things you're searched for.
While your web designer doesn't have to be an SEO strategist who shows you how to rank first on Google, they should make sure your website is the perfect foundation for your content strategy.
#7 - The web designer meets your budget
Affordability is subjective. While some may consider a $10,000 website cheap, others may find $3,000 expensive for a website. Price points vary for everyone with the budget we've in mind, but also for what we understand we're getting.
Do you just want a cheap and simple website or do you want your website to be tailored to your needs and make an emotional connection with your ideal customers?
Do you just want a site that people will land on and maybe buy something, or do you want to intentionally capture your site visitors?
Good website designers don't just create a website for you, they turn your website into a lead generation machine that pays for itself over time. In an age where websites are your virtual business card: Can you really afford to miss the opportunity to capture dream clients in your virtual presence just because you wanted to save a few bucks?
More than that, good website designers will guide and coach you when it comes to improvements, adjustments and small things that have big impact because they do it all the time and see things you don't.
So set your price expectations, be clear about what you'll get for it, and choose the person who meets all of those points.
If you answered all the questions from above and want a beautiful and converting Squarespace website, then have a look at out website design services. We look forward to meeting you!
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